White Sheet to Hide My Face
by fuddling
Summary: An AU where Yuuri contracts a fatal disease and keeps it to himself in order not to stress out his friends. Due to this, he works on foreign relations to build Shin Makoku strong before he dies. He tries to spend quality time with his friends as well as training Wolfram to be the next Maoh. / 1 out of 5 possible chapters. May include spoilers up to the second season.
1. CH 1: The First Golden Leaf

Today might've been the worst day of Yuuri's life; you know, beside the whole "literally getting flushed down the toilet" deal.

Yuuri was exhausted; the entire past week had taken up all his energy. It all began when he thought he'd caught a cold, or something of the sort. After a tiring coughing fit in the morning he figured: screw it, I'm staying home from school today. He found himself slightly stressing over and missing Shin Makoku, and so decided it be an ideal day to skip, rest, then visit his kingdom. Sure, Earthly schoolwork was important, but he wasn't a king here.

However, he did not go to Shin Makoku the morning he skipped. Instead, he spent the day in bed. His mother didn't question it and figured he needed the day off, but after three days of straight sleeping, she decided it was time for a trip to the doctor's.

He was just so _tired_. And with that, came frustration. What was wrong? He didn't have the time nor patience to take all these tests then to wait for the results. His chest hurt a bit and he coughed here and there, but surely he could only have a petty infection that would easily be cured by a month of antibiotics. Despite that, he found himself getting a troublesome amount of blood, tissue, and imaging tests.

Subsequently, after a long doctor's appointment of all talk, he found himself finally home again and sitting in the living room silently. Neither Shouri nor his dad were home, it was only him and his mother, who had disappeared to her room. He tried to think of how he'd tell the other half of his family: "Hey, dad, guess what! I've contracted some godforsaken fungus infection in my lungs and its more than likely going to kill me." The boy sighed to himself. Apparently it's called aspergillosis. The doctor had offered antibiotics, however they only work 20% of the time. Another option is surgery, however, it is only considered to be of temporary use. He trembled just at the thought; his lungs were dying inside of him and now it was inevitably spreading to his brain, heart, kidneys…

But why? Because he had a "compromised immune system"—a fancy way of saying your body has no idea how to protect itself. The doctor listed many reasons why Yuuri, of all people in the world, could've had a compromised immune system, and none of them had to do with his excessive traveling between worlds. Yuuri snorted at the thought. He had a few ideas: perhaps his body was struggling to build immunity against both worlds. Or maybe he had inherited Julia's immune system—much like he had the Wincott blood—in which is only strong against the viruses back at the kingdom. Or even this: the travel between two worlds had weakened his body. Either way, he found that he could sit and dwell all day long but it wasn't going to change the fact that he was going to die.

Leaning over with his elbows on his knees, he thought. He had to plan ahead. What would be the next step from here? How were his priorities set? He considered going to school one last time, but then again, the only school related activity he gave two damns about was his baseball team.

But he couldn't stop worrying about Shin Makoku. It was always there, in the back of his mind: his reign, his people, and his best friends in which he might as well consider family.

Without further hesitated, he decided to go. Bursting into his mom's room, he embraced her tightly and kissed her on the cheek, in which promptly lead to her break-down into tears.

"It's okay." Yuuri said with a light tone in his voice as he reached away and grabbed a box of tissues for her. "Love you, mom." He smiled at her. He wish he could've done more, but how was he supposed to comfort her when he was the one dying? Yuuri felt that he himself had not accepted the fact yet. If he had, shouldn't he be crying for himself?

But there was so much to be done.

After the short hugging session, Yuuri left to the bathroom. Miko nearly hyperventilated when she heard the water running in the bathtub, and pushed the door open only to discover an empty room.

Yuuri shivered as his friends covered him with towels.

"You Majesty is going to catch a cold—" Gunter pleaded.

"I know, I know. You say that every time I come like it's something new." Yuuri mumbled as he ruffled his hair with a towel.

"About time," Wolfram muttered under his breath.

Yuuri opened his mouth to say something, but instead sneezed.

"I knew it! There has _got_ to be a better way to get here." Gunter scolded, though his expression fell into one of worry as Yuuri leaned forward in a coughing fit. Gunter and Wolfram blinked in a dumbfounded manner as Conrad took a seat next to Yuuri and rubbed his back until he recovered.

Embarrassed, the double-black quickly wiped his mouth against his sleeve and sat up. "Alright, fine," he peeped up, "you got me. I have a cold."

"Oh, your Majesty," Gunter sighed as he embraced Yuuri, pulling his wet head to his chest. "I'll order you some tea and soup right away."

"I'm fine—" Yuuri laughed sheepishly as he caught Wolfram giving him a hard, chiding glare.

With that, Gunter was off to get Yuuri a fresh set of clothes. The king put his arms into the air and stretched, concealing a yawn. "So what did I miss?" he asked, alternating his gaze between Wolfram and Conrad.

"Not much, your Majesty." Conrad responded with a content smile.

"Everything," Wolfram snapped on the contrary. "Don't leave us for that long."

Yuuri only sighed and leaned back. "I know, I know. I guess I'll start by catching up on my paperwork."

"Evidently, you don't know." Wolfram hissed.

It caught Yuuri off guard. He just sort of stared at Wolfram, thinking about the sudden angry remark. Was he implying that Yuuri didn't care about his own kingdom? His gaze shifted to the ground, feeling very underestimated.

"…I'll make it up to you guys." _Especially now that I'm on my deathbed._

"Good." Wolfram replied with a slight hesitation as he tried to sound unconvinced. However, he felt a pang of guilt, seeing as Yuuri took his teasing more seriously than he had intended. It wasn't very like him.

Yuuri stood up and placed his hands on Wolfram's shoulders, who was promptly taken aback by the contact. "I'm going to my work room and I want you to come with me." He said in a matter-of-fact fashion followed by a pleasant grin.

Flustered, Wolfram gave a short nod. "I—"

"And that's an order," he added as a touch of dominance. Yuuri turned his head to glance at Conrad. "And you: please tell Gunter where I'm at so he doesn't have a panic attack."

Conrad gave a curt nod, studying what he could of Yuuri's face before he turned away. He caught on quickly that something was divergent about him, though couldn't pinpoint it. Surely Wolfram's mocking couldn't affect Yuuri to such an extent? "Yes, sir."

"Good." Yuuri gave a nod, satisfied with his work. He turned away and began towards one of the entrances to the castle. Wolfram followed without hesitation, casually stuffing his thumb inside the belt of his scabbard. Conrad was left watching them disappear from view, contemplating Yuuri's long disappearance beforehand.


	2. CH 2: Temperatures Fall

Chapter 2: Temperatures Fall

The room had a dreary atmosphere, almost as if a fog of sadness surrounded their ankles. It was quiet besides the scratching of pen against paper; even Wolfram twitched uneasily. At least he could be grateful this was the most Yuuri had ever worked without whining for a break—a solid fifteen minutes.

After a forced clearing of his throat, Wolfram spoke up in an unwavering tone. "Why did you want me here? Not that I'm against it, it just seemed a little…"

"Are there guards outside the room?" Yuuri asked, looking up as he chewed on the smooth base of the feather pen.

"What?"

"Shoo them."

Wolfram stared at him, befuddled. "You're being _ridiculous_, you-"

"That was an order, Wolfram." Wolfram felt furious. There was no firmness in Yuuri's voice, but an order was an order and Wolfram was forced to do the chore.

When Wolfram returned, he stood there with his arms crossed. "I moved them down to the post at the end of the hallway, assuming that's good with you."

"That is good enough for me." Yuuri chimed with a small nod as he wrote his signature at the bottom of his paper.

"—Why, though?"

"Why what?"

"Don't play dumb," Wolfram grunted. "Why did you want us here alone?"

Yuuri placed the pen back into the ink reservoir. "Well," he began, tipping the chair back with a foot on the edge of the desk. "It gets sorta lonely." Followed by his answer was a small chuckle as he scratched the side of his head in a nervous fashion.

"Lonely?" Wolfram was taken aback by the answer. After a moment, he visibly untensed and turned his nose away. "Wimp." He snorted under his breath.

Yuuri nearly tipped the chair backwards. "What?!" He hadn't heard Wolfram call him that in months.

They made eye contact followed by laughter in unison.

Wolfram walked over to Yuuri and pulled out a chair from the corner of the room, dusting it off before sitting beside the other. "I suppose I don't see anything wrong with spending time with my fiancé." Wolfram grinned proudly. "What are you doing, specifically?" he asked, glancing down at the papers sprawled all across the desk.

"Oh. I guess I'm just signing them." He placed his paper upon a messy "done" pile on the left side of the desk. Following, he snatched a new one, which was already filled out, and scribbled his signature at the bottom.

"You're not even going to read it?" Wolfram's brow twitched in annoyance.

"I scanned it." Yuuri presented a childish grin. "Besides, I trust what Gwendal fills out."

"You're going to have to fill these out someday."

"I know, I know. I actually did fill out a few." Yuuri tossed the paper to the side and put the pen back down. He turned to face Wolfram, resting an elbow on the desk. "I, um." He started.

Wolfram gave a look of curiosity, followed by an improvement of posture. "Yes?"

"I wanted to ask you something."

"Spit it out."

"You're, uh. Healing abilities." The king faltered.

"Yeah? What about them?" he asked, glancing down at his own hand.

"What can you do, exactly?" Yuuri's gaze shifted away, as if he were bugged by the whole thing.

"Hm." Wolfram shifted a bit in his chair, trying to order the words in his head. "It's mostly for healing physically damaged tissue, such as closing a cut. But it can't kill of the virus. So, in your case, with that petty little cold of yours…say you have a raw throat; I'd be able to heal it, but I can't get rid of the mucus and thus guarantee it won't get dry again."

"I see…" Yuuri said quietly, nodding to himself. He stared at the ground, feeling anxiety build up in him. It was a thought that had passed through his mind—that maybe, just maybe, the Mazokus' healing abilities might have an effect on this wretched disease. He looked up, opened his mouth, and then looked down again.

Wolfram sighed with an undertone amusement. "Come here, you wuss." He scooted closer and grabbed Yuuri's chin, adjusting him to look up. "Where does it hurt?"

"I, uh." Yuuri's face went red and he squirmed in Wolfram's grasp. "My chest."

"Stop moving," Wolfram snapped. He took his hand away from Yuuri's face and instead placed it on his chest.

Naturally, Yuuri tensed under the contact. His face felt too hot when he looked straight at Wolfram's face, so instead he shifted his eyes to the other side of the room. He noticed that Wolfram, despite not wanting to show it, must have been nervous because it took him a moment before anything actually happened.

He fell into thought as he half-mindedly watched the soft glow reflect off the walls. The double-black considered asking Wolfram out on a date. Not necessarily a romantic one…just _a date._ Wolfram was destined to be the Maoh after him and he felt it was now necessary to address; regarding that Yuuri's days left were unpredictable. He decided that, despite political plans he had in mind, it was important he should have a "date" with everyone he cared for. Such as: maybe to play a game of catch with Conrad, or to have one last history lesson with Gunter.

He felt an uneasy feeling swell in his chest when he thought about everyone and instinctively placed his hand over his chest—over Wolfram's.

Wolfram was caught off guard by it and stopped suddenly. "Yuuri, what is it?"

Yuuri shook his head as if it would make his thoughts fly off somewhere else. "Sorry. I just feel sick." He now held Wolfram's single cold hand between both of his. "I'm going to treat you to a date. Remind me so I don't forget."

"—What?" Wolfram was shaken.

"I have to go." Yuuri stood up quickly without pushing his chair in and ran out of the room. After a moment of shock, Wolfram followed after only to stop abruptly at the doorway.

"A date?! When? Where!"

"Your Majesty?" Gunter looked up, confused, as Yuuri entered his study room. "_Your Majesty_," he stressed, "you never got your soup! It must be cold now, but I'm sure the maids are willing to whip up a new pot so you can have it fresh."

"That won't be necessary." Yuuri gave a little nod. "Thank you, though."

Gunter stood up and dashed over to Yuuri. "Are you sure you're alright? You look pale." He held a hand up to Yuuri's forehead, only to be slightly taken aback. "…and you're so warm! Perhaps my hand is just cold. Here, I should have a thermometer somewhere around here…"

Yuuri held a hand up to his own mouth and hid an amused grin. "I'm fine, Gunter. I came here because I have a request of you."

"A request?" Gunter blinked. "Of course; anything for your Majesty."

"I want to study with you."

Gunter was astounded. "Really?" He turned to one of the guards. "Get us some tea, please." Then back to Yuuri. "I know just where to start!"

_Just like an excited puppy_, he thought. Yuuri felt like he was glowing. How smart of him to combine both the activities at once—spending time with Gunter and all the while increasing his political knowledge.

Yuuri, however, cared deeply of Gunter. Even though he was quite over-the-top sometimes, Yuuri safely knew how dedicated Gunter was to both him and the kingdom. It was the least he could do to spend a little time with such an honourable man.

Gunter absolutely adored their study session. He was jubilant when Yuuri took notes and discussed things with him. The fact that Yuuri was genuinely interested is what truly made his day. As their study session came to a slow, they began having a conversation about other things; Yuuri tried to explain a game chess to Gunter while Gunter explained some old Mazoku game where children would throw sticks up into a tree and in response, some creature with wings would interact with them by dropping leafs and berries at their feet. Whoever gets the most items within a certain time limit would win. Apparently they were used commonly as pets because they were so friendly in nature. When Gunter tried to draw it, Yuuri thought that it looked a bit like a squirrel…or maybe a bat? Something like that…

"Alright," Yuuri spoke up, relieving a small sigh of exhaustion. "Report to them that I'd like to discuss an alliance."

"Very well," Gunter replied in a pleased manner, "I think you've made a good choice. Oh, and—would you like another cup of tea before you go to bed?"

"I think I'll be fine, but thanks." Yuuri gave a yawn and laid his head down on the desk. He couldn't believe it was already dark outside. A whole day of studying and he didn't complain one bit…Yuuri felt he deserved a trophy or something.

"Your Majesty," Gunter spoke up as he stood at the door frame, his arms full of books.

"Huh?"

"Thank you."

Yuuri smiled in turn.

He wanted more days ahead of him—more days to make people smile.


End file.
